Area drive-in theaters to screen Jimmy Buffett concert June 19

Two area drive-in movie theaters will take part in a landmark concert event, featuring one of America’s favorite party bands.

Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band will perform “Live at the Drive-In,” a live concert broadcast from the Coyote Drive-In at Panther Island in Fort Worth, Texas, on June 19.

The performance will be simultaneously broadcast to other drive-ins across the country, including the Sundance Kid in Oregon and Field of Dreams in Liberty Center.

Jimmy Buffett. Photo courtesy Jimmy Buffett.

The first-of-its-kind event has been coordinated from Texas by Brandt Wood, one of the owners of the Coyote Drive-In. He decided to get into the business last year, with the hope of bringing back a fading American tradition.

“The idea of the drive-in as an iconic venue has been reduced in number just in the modern age, and converting to digital projection [is a challenge],” Wood said. “[Our] idea was to bring it back, and create a 21st century drive-in with really good food and beverage and playgrounds, sort of a restaurant/bar at a drive-in.”

So far, the Coyote has been a success and has been setting the standard for other digitally equipped drive-ins across the country.

“It’s sort of been the model of what a drive-in can be, as far as amenities. It’s been fun,” Wood said.

The idea for the live broadcast first emerged when Wood was visiting with Buffett at a concert. When Buffett learned that Wood had opened a drive-in, he expressed interest in playing a live show at the location.

“We thought, why don’t we hit him with an idea to broadcast it to all the other drive-ins and make it a really impactful, positive thing for the drive-in business, and a way for him to reach fans that may be out of his touring range?”

Buffett loved the idea, and got his team involved in helping to make it happen.

Eighty-six theaters are involved with the project, and Wood and his team established a working relationship with all of them to market the event.

“It took a lot of trust and good faith,” Wood said. “Drive-in owners are quintessential ‘good folks.’”

The concert will begin at 9:50 p.m., but the Sundance Kid will open its facilities at 7 p.m. for a few good hours of tailgating.

“We’ll have a DJ playing beach music, we’ll be grilling out, we’ll have souvenirs and goodies for sale,” said Kim Walter, marketing director for Great Eastern Theatres, which operates the Sundance Kid.

Grilled food like burgers (“Cheeseburgers in Paradise”) will be available for purchase, and beer and margaritas will be served by the Eastern Maumee Bay Chamber of Commerce. All alcohol must be purchased on site.